Solar Roadways?
08-04-2010, 12:54 PM
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You have to admit, in concept, the whole idea of changing the materials used in making a road makes a great deal of sense. 
Whether or not we'll ever actually see something like this in the real world remains to be seen...
Whether or not we'll ever actually see something like this in the real world remains to be seen...
08-05-2010, 01:27 AM
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pretty out there... the idea is cool but its not even a bit practical.
6072 led's in a 12x12 prototype!!???
i don't even wanna imagine the stress on the poor soul that'll have to wire a whole street! before we ever need to find an alternative to asphalt, we'll develop something at a fraction of the cost of a solar road; something concrete based, or resin, or most likely recycled material. this idea is definitely a cool school project tho. 
one new thing i know now is that we're running out of asphalt
there is a possibility that this prototype can be used in smaller projects, like an asphalt parking lot as they said, but definitely not a whole city (street system). and for a parking lot, they wouldn't need as many LEDs, so it could definitely be a possibility in the future... for a city like Dubai though. 
good find
6072 led's in a 12x12 prototype!!???
i don't even wanna imagine the stress on the poor soul that'll have to wire a whole street! before we ever need to find an alternative to asphalt, we'll develop something at a fraction of the cost of a solar road; something concrete based, or resin, or most likely recycled material. this idea is definitely a cool school project tho. one new thing i know now is that we're running out of asphalt
there is a possibility that this prototype can be used in smaller projects, like an asphalt parking lot as they said, but definitely not a whole city (street system). and for a parking lot, they wouldn't need as many LEDs, so it could definitely be a possibility in the future... for a city like Dubai though. good find
08-05-2010, 04:41 AM
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I agree that this won't happen right away but I'm pretty sure that the wiring task would be not a big deal. I have to imagine that the panels will automatically connect to each other via some sort of conductive interlocking. Obviously, the prototypes in the video aren't as sophisticated and probably have more physical wiring visible than the final product might have...
08-05-2010, 05:37 AM
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I think the real problem will be figuring out how make them clear AND have traction....
"Hey John, I can't get no damn traction...."
"Here Rick, I got an idea....let's pour asphalt over it!"
"Hey John, I can't get no damn traction...."
"Here Rick, I got an idea....let's pour asphalt over it!"
08-05-2010, 05:48 AM
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